The inaugural World Cup in 1930 was the only tournament to invite all members of FIFA, the governing body of football, to participate. Hosted by Uruguay, a mere 13 national teams made the trip to that tiny country. Uruguay emerged victorious in an all-South American final, beating Argentina 4–2.
Because many European teams did not compete in the previous World Cup, defending champions Uruguay refused to travel to Italy to do so in 1934. Yet many nations wanted to compete and the final 16 emerged after qualification rounds, which remain to this day. Host Italy won to the delight of Benito Mussolini, giving this fascist dictator a propaganda coup to boost nationalism, militarism and racism.
Italy regained the trophy, beating Hungary 4–2 in the final and making Vittorio Pozzo the only coach to win the tournament twice. Mussolini was charming as ever and reportedly sent a telegram to his players saying, “Vincere o morire!” — “win or die.” No wonder Hungarian goalkeeper Antal Szabó famously quipped, “I may have let in four goals, but at least I saved their lives.” Notably, the English team gave the Nazi salute in a friendly match against Germany in the run-up to the tournament.
In 1939, World War II began. Naturally, organizing the World Cup was out of the question. Countries competed on the battlefield instead of the football field, leading to tragic bloodshed and terrible destruction.
After World War II ended, it took five years for FIFA to organize the next World Cup. In the final, Brazil needed a draw to lift the trophy. Instead, the host nation lost 2–1 to Uruguay. The 200,000 people who had turned up to salsa at the newly-built Maracana Stadium left with tears in their eyes. Brazilians treated the loss as a national tragedy, while a talented young boy promised his inconsolable father that he would bring the trophy home one day.
Many regard the Hungarian team of the 1950s as the greatest team never to win the World Cup. It was stylish, pioneered total football and had some of the best players of all time. West Germany lost 8–3 to Hungary in a group match, but won the final in an upset that has since been called the “Miracle of Bern.” The tragedy of 1956 followed the heartbreak of 1954. Soviet tanks rolled down the streets of Budapest to crush popular protests and Moscow’s oppression destroyed a legendary football team.
This was the first time a mixed-race team arrived in Sweden to pick up the mantle of Hungary and play beautiful football with a South American twist. Players with fast legs, sashaying hips and quick minds mesmerized the world. And 17-year-old Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pelé, a poor black kid from the favelas — Brazil’s urban slums — emerged as the sport’s first global superstar. He scored two goals in the final and fulfilled the promise he made to his father after Brazil’s loss of 1950.
Brazil won again in Chile, defeating Czechoslovakia 3–1 in the final. Manuel Francisco dos Santos, better known as Garrincha, another poor black kid from the favelas, was the superstar this time. But it is the infamous “Battle of Santiago” that has gone down as one of the ugliest spectacles of the beautiful game. Chile played Italy in a game where fouls, punches and kicks dominated, forcing the police to intervene. As a result, FIFA introduced yellow and red cards to the game.
England, the birthplace of football, hosted the tournament. Unfortunately, a London gangster stole the trophy before the World Cup kicked off. Luckily, the trophy was recovered and England won in a pulsating final. They beat West Germany 4–2 at Wembley, the spiritual home of football. The black spot for the tournament was all African teams boycotting the World Cup because of a dispute with FIFA, the first and only time an entire continent has done so.
Brazil and Pelé won a historic third World Cup, retaining the Jules Rimet trophy forever. Held in Mexico, this was the first World Cup broadcast on color television. The tournament now became a global spectacle and another great Brazilian team played what Pelé called o jogo bonito, which translates as “the beautiful game.” This World Cup is also remembered for Brazilian Captain Carlos Alberto Torres’s spectacular goal in the final that has since been voted the best team goal of all time.
Like Hungary, another great team playing beautiful football lost. This Dutch team of 1974 made total football famous. Led by Johan Cruyff, a peerless player, inspirational captain and profound philosopher of the game, the Netherlands lost 2–1 to gritty West Germany but still left their mark in football history.
Argentina controversially hosted the World Cup. General Jorge Rafael Videla was the military dictator and took a leaf out of Mussolini’s book, using this tournament for propaganda purposes. After being held at gunpoint in Barcelona before the tournament, Cruyff did not play in this World Cup. Argentina beat the Netherlands 3–1 in the final, but suspicions of sympathetic refereeing for the hosts have never gone away.
A great Brazilian team playing beautiful football lost to a pragmatic Italian team in the semifinals because Brazil simply forgot to defend. In the other semifinal, West Germany beat France 5–4 in what midfielder Michel Platini described as his “most beautiful game” ever. Italy beat West Germany in a dull final, matching Brazil to win the tournament a third time.
Like Garrincha in 1962, Captain Diego Maradona shone like a bright sun in this World Cup. He dribbled magically, ran speedily and scored beautifully. Argentina beat West Germany 3–2 in the final and Belgium in the semifinal. In the quarterfinal, Argentina beat England through two Maradona goals in the Mexican sun. The tiny genius scored the first using his hand and then danced past half the English team to score the second, now known as the goal of the century.
West Germany reached its third consecutive final and won this time around. They beat old foe Argentina with an off-color Maradona in a drab final. The Berlin Wall had fallen in 1989 and German reunification followed a year later. This tournament is remembered more for Cameroon’s dancing striker, Roger Milla, and England’s crying midfielder, Paul Gascoigne, better known as Gazza.
For the first time, the US hosted the World Cup. Soccer, as the Americans call football, hit the American consciousness in a big way. Brazil, a familiar team from the Americas, won playing in an unfamiliarly ugly fashion, beating Italy in a penalty shootout. This World Cup is also remembered for the murder of Andrés Escobar, a Colombian player who made a mistake in a match and was later gunned down.
France hosted the World Cup and won 3–0 in the final. Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, dubbed Il Fenomeno — the phenomenon — fell mysteriously ill before the match. Zinedine Zidane, a Frenchman of Berber origins, emerged as the star of the tournament scoring two goals in the final and a multiracial team ignited hopes of a new era of a more inclusive France.
Asia hosted the World Cup for the first time. Hearteningly, it was two historic enemies who joined hands. South Korea and Japan combined to put up a good show, although there were allegations that referees had favored the former. Brazil beat Germany 2–0 with Ronaldo redeeming himself after defeat in 1998, scoring twice in the final and eight goals in the tournament.
This World Cup marked the coming of age of a united Germany on the global stage. Germans welcomed people from around the world to their homes, put on a spectacular party and even played beautiful football. They lost to Italy in the semifinals, who went on to win the tournament after French legend Zidane was sent off for headbutting defender Marco Materazzi who had been fouling and provoking him relentlessly. It marked a sad end to a glorious career.
This tournament was controversially held in South Africa. Allegations that the country secured the World Cup through bribery were rife. The deafening noise of the vuvuzela horns made this tournament an entirely new experience. Italy bowed out in the first round and perennial international underachievers Spain finally won a big tournament with midfield maestro Andrés Iniesta scoring in extra time. His goal-winning celebrations revealed the message, “Dani Jarque siempre con nosotros” (always with us), a tribute to Iniesta’s late friend.
Brazil hosted the World Cup again after 1950. This time they lost not 2–1, but 7–1 in the semifinal to eventual winners Germany. Yet this footballing disgrace paled in comparison to the national humiliation Brazil suffered because of the staggering level of corruption in this tournament. One stadium in Brasilia cost an astronomical $900 million. No wonder football-mad Brazilians came out on the streets in mass protests instead of football celebrations.
Russia hosted the World Cup spectacularly even as the sentiment of the great Western powers was turning against Moscow. Like the previous three tournaments, the defending champions Germany faced elimination in the first round. A young French team won the tournament and 19-year-old striker Kylian Mbappé became the first teenager since Pelé to score in the final. Croatia’s central midfielder, Luka Modrić, was on the losing side in the final, but the midfield maestro won the Golden Ball, awarded to the best player in the World Cup.
After living in Maradona’s shadow for more than a decade, forward Lionel Messi achieved glory in Qatar. In prior tournaments, Argentina lost many finals despite his genius and many questioned this Barcelona man’s loyalty to the nation. This time, Messi turned into a bit of a bad boy, especially against the Dutch team in the quarterfinal. In an iconic final against France in which Mbappé scored a hat-trick, La Albiceleste won a penalty shootout to bring relief and joy to their football-mad nation.
Tiny Qatar hosted 32 teams and 64 matches while Canada, the United States and Mexico will be hosting 48 teams and 104 games. For the first time, three nations are hosting the World Cup in 16 cities across an entire continent. Worries about extreme heat and extensive travel causing player injuries cloud the quadrennial celebration of the global game. Also, football’s governing body already faces controversy for giving US President Donald Trump the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize.
Credits
Written by Atul Singh & Samantha
Mendiguren
Edited by Lee Thompson-Kolar
Produced by Abul-Hasanat
Siddique
Art and design by Lokendra Singh
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and Creative Commons